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every time I turn the power it goes into infinite self check mode. the unit is not able to open after that. I opened the top case and then the front case. My recorder started going to self check mode and then says bye. Today decided to repair myself.The root cause of this , the dvd is stuck inside the dvd drive. Aftre this i removed the screws that hold the dvd burner TOp cover and pulled the Stuck DVD myself. left it like that for a while. It is working fine after that.
The ones to buy are the Taiyo Yuden DVD-Rs. If you buy the cheap ones, the discs will fail after 6 months to a year. I've never had one of these discs fail after being recorded.
They will play fine at first and than the picture will start to freeze up and finally will just quit all together. I've also discovered that is best to format the HDD every so often and clean the DVD laser lens with one of the lens cleaning discs.The other thing to keep in mind is, do not put this machine where it can't ventilate itself well. I've had this recorder since 2004 and it's never failed yet.
The only real problem I've had is with blank DVDs. I've probably recorded over 200 DVDs with it and hours of TV on to the HDD. I've had glitches with it, but unplugging it and plugging it back it always seems to fix any problems.
If you block the fan on vents on the back or put it next to a heat source and let it over heat, it will fail.
Nothing I can do about that and I'm glad I have digitized some of my never-have-again programs recorded on VHS in the 80's and 90's, as well as my parent's old 8mm movies from the 40's thru 70's. I get the definite impression that Panasonic is fully aware of this bug but isn't about to initiate a service bulletin because of the age of the product.
A few months ago I had a problem with lockup during playback and after stumping my local repair shop (even after they contacted Panasonic) I sent it to Panasonic in CA for repair. They replaced a board and $130 later I have a working unit again.
I got my Panasonic about 3 years back to transfer all my home-recorded video tapes, and there were a LOT of them. I can't complain too loudly after all the unit has done for me, but I'm waiting for the next generation of higher def recorders (not upconverters).
I figure I must have recorded nearly 150 DVD's - many of them with multiple titles. I know that because of the era this unit was manufactured that 480p was the best resolution of the time, and this sometimes reveals itself on playback on my 37" 720p TV.
I pray that the market will continue to support standalone DVR/DVD-R's in a world of Tivo subscriptions.
It has never failed me. We have watched thousands of movies and recorded shows weekly for years without the first problem.I am looking forward to the HD version when it arrives. I have had this unit for many years now. If it is half as good as this one, it will be GREAT.
I get the same "RECOVER" message a lot of people are getting and the unit reboots. At this point, I can still record to the hard drive and watch programs at a later time. This unit worked great for almost 2 years. I'm wondering how long that will even last now. I wouldn't be surprised if a cheap unit broke so soon. Now, I cannot record anything from the hard drive to the DVD. but I paid a lot of money for this and expected much more.
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